Luminous attachment



O. H. VAN AMBERG. LUMINOUS ATTACHMENT.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 27, I918.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Fig. 4.

Fig.8.

Inventor Otto H.Van fimberg,

His JIttorney.

sTATEs OTTO H. VAN AMBEBG, F SCHENECTADY, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. I

LUMINOUS ATTACHMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 12, 1920.

Application filed May 27, 1918. Serial No. 236,708.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that L-O'rro H. VAN AM- nnno, a citizen of the United States, residing at Schenectady, in the county of Schenectady, State of New York, have invented certain new andmseful Improvements in Luminous Attachments, of which the fol- -lowing is a specification.

My invention relates to luminous attachments for indicating to a person entering a. dark room the position of a lighting switch present known to me, while its scope will be indicated in my claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows one form of device embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view illustrating details of construction and installation.

Fig. 3 is a plan View of the attachment.

Figs. 4 and'5, are similar views illustrating modified forms of construction.

Figs. 6 and 7 are detail views of a part shown in Fig. 5; Fig. 6 an elevation at right angles to Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 a plan view.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view of a modified form of one of the parts.

The device of my present invention is intended for apparatus with pendent cord moans-such for example, as electric light switches of the pull chain type. It is intended to take the place of the ball usually attached to such chains, and it is so simple that any person can effect the substitution without difiiculty.

As will be seen from Fig. 1,-the device 5 comprises a glass cup piece 6 adapted to contain suitable luminous material 7 ,-either in the form of powder, or as a coating painted on its interior surface,-a metal cover part 8 to which the cup is secured, and

ineans 9 projecting upward from .the part 8 for interlocking with the pull-chain to secure the device thereto, Fig. 2. The'cup 6 has a beveled flange or lip 11 at its upper edge (shown as an enlargement), and the cover 8 has in its center a cylindrical bore 12 and at its lower edge (see Fig. 2) a thin flange'l3 depending from an internal shoulder 1% that forms a seat for the upper edge of the cup,a yieldable disk 15 of heavy paper being interposed and serving as an inner cover immediately overlying and sealing the cup. The cup'6 is secured in the cover 8 by beading or spinning over the flange 13 on the flange ortion or lip 11 as at 16. The chain securing means 9 is of a type heretofore in commercial use for securing ordinary metal balls to pull-chains, consisting of a bent-up sleeve of sheet metal with its upper edge bent in (see'Fig. 3) so as to leave but a small opening '17 in the center. A little below the upper end in the same. side of the sleeve as the slit 18, there is a lateral opening 19, and at its lower end is a flange 21 thatlies against a shoulder 22 in the bore 12. Paper or other disks or filling may be inserted in the lower end of the bore 11 to any desired thickness. 1

To apply the device 5 to an ordinary socket switch chain, it is only necessary to detach the ordinary enlarged ball from the chain and then insert the endball of the chain sidewisein the opening 19 and force its connecting bar through the slit 18 into the opening 17.

It will be seen that the glower consisting of the cup 6; and the luminous material 7 is equally bright and visible in all directions, (except from almost directly above it, which is an exception of no practical moment)? and that the device is neat, convenient, and effective, as well as simple in construction and manufacture. While any selfluminousmaterial may'be used, the most satisfactory at present on the market are those which owe their luminosity to radium (or mcsothorium) and zinc 'sulfid; they can easily be made to give the glower a useful flanged over. The securingsleeve .35 (like that of Figs. 1 and 2) has a flange 36 at its lower end, engaged between the washer 34 and a metal disk 37 that serves as an inner cover for the cup 33.

In Fig.. 5, the glass cup 40 hasnear its Lthe hook are bent apart so asto be clamped between the metal disk inner cover 47 and the cover 42.

Fig. 8 shows a glass cup 48 diflering from that of Fig. 1 only in having a central core 49, which may consist of a short length of glass rod or tubing fused to the bottom of a cup like that in Fig. 1; This is intended for use with a filling of powder, to save the central portion which would be inefi'ectual and useless. The annular space about the core may have a'width of something less than or 2 What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is':--

1. A luminous pull-chain attachment comprising a glass cup with a flange portion at its upper edge, said cup containing selfluminous material, a metal cover for said cup beaded around said flange portion so as to hold the cup securely, an inner cover of yielding material immediately overlying the cup, and means projecting upward from the upper surface of the cover for interlocking with a pull chain to secure the attachment thereto.

2. A luminous attachment as set, forth in claim 1 in which the upward projecting securing means has an expanded portion within the cover held between it and the inner cover immediately overlying the cup.

3. A luminous attachment as set forth in claim 1 in which the cover has the form of an inverted bowl with a shoulder above the cup edge and the upwar projecting securing means comprises ametal sleeve extend- 

